5 Ideas For Deepening Your Spiritual Practice Every Day

We are all at different stages in our spiritual development journey, and many of us will differ in the ways that we interpret and conduct our spiritual practice.

Certain spiritual practices speak more to some than to others and we all have different lives, priorities and lifestyles.

For instance, a busy new mom might have the desire to deepen her spiritual practice, but isn’t able to spend hours in meditation, though she may have done that before her children arrived, for example. [one easy solution to this is to use an app like Calm or Headspace so you can at least get 10 minutes of meditation a day].

We all have different circumstances.

But if we are to engage in the act of deepening a spiritual practice, we will constantly need to be aware of how we can feed that part of ourselves, so that we not only connect to it, but can deepen our spiritual practice each day.

Here are 5 ways of deepening your spiritual practice every day

1. Make space every day

This is one of the best things we can do to continue to deepen our spiritual practice.

While we may already be doing this, many of us may not necessarily be engaged in practices such as meditation, mindfulness or yoga. This can make us feel that the spiritual path is not for us, or that we are somehow failing. But every breath can be a meditation.

Even if we are burdened by tasks and chores and we can’t make it to the yoga mat – because our baby is teething or our boss has called us in for overtime in order to land that contract – we can just remember to connect. We can check-in on our spiritual selves. Then we can make contact with our true selves in a way that doesn’t demand ritual, or time or space.

We are always there, always. Just knowing that is enough.

2. Be aware of the cyclical and never-ending nature of our spiritual development

It’s a symbol that can be traced across cultures, civilizations and time periods: the ouroboros [1].

This is the circular symbol of the snake, or sometimes dragon, swallowing its own tail. It reminds us that our journey is constant, never-ending, that there is always more to be discovered, more layers to unearth and to journey into. It reminds us of how deep our spiritual development can go.

By being aware of this we are always open to discovering more, conscious that our development is cyclical and that when one cycle ends, another will begin. Our job, no matter how far we are into the journey, is to know what part of the cycle we are in. What will it unearth? What treasure will we bring back? How do I know incorporate it into my experience? How do I continue to deepen my spiritual practice? The possibilities are endless.

3. Ask the question, “Who am I?”

This is the simplest yet most profound question we can ask ourselves, no matter where we are on the journey.

Opening ourselves to this question, particularly when times feel hard and we can feel disconnected, can help remind us, take us further down into who we are.

Again, this is something that we can incorporate into our daily lives no matter how many distractions there are, though the quieter we can get, the more likely we are to hear the answers.

Having said that, you could ask yourself while washing the dishes, walking to the water-cooler in the office, or even before you go to bed, allowing the unconscious to take over and answer that question for you.

“Who am I?”

This question helps us to go deeper and deeper in spiritual practice and in our spiritual development.

4. Lucid dreaming

There are so many parts of us that can speak to us through our dreams. The more intentional we are about understanding them, the more we can become conscious of them.

In that sense we become the observer – we are asleep, letting our unconscious free to speak, yet at the same time we are awake, aware that we need to be observing this. Lucid dreaming can be a gateway to further understanding ourselves and there are ways that we can practice how to do this so that we can incorporate it into our spiritual practice and deepen our understanding of ourselves.

5. Honour the seasons within you

Similar to the idea of the cyclical nature of spiritual development is that of the seasonal cycles within this.

Nature reveals to us the best examples of this, and therefore this is a practice that grounds us, brings us closer to the earth. It is now mid-Winter here in the UK. The trees and plants are conserving their energy, going to ground, they will be ready come Spring or Summer. Now is the time to hibernate, incubate ideas and intentions. There is a time for everything. Honour that space.

And that is how to deepen your spiritual practice

These are just some ways that we can deepen spiritual practice.

These idea help us to deepen and expand our awareness and to make a conscious connection every day to that deeper, universal, authentic part of ourselves.

If we can incorporate new spiritual practices like these, we can navigate and deepen our connection through the most difficult of times, the busiest of lifestyles, and even the mundanities of our every day chaotic lives.

We can be present. We can know that we are there. Always.

Author: Melanie Smith

Melanie is a writer and author from Wales, UK. She writes articles on the things that she is passionate about, including personal development, wellbeing and spirituality. She also has a love for folklore, myth and legend. She is currently writing her second fantasy novel.

Guest Post

This article was submitted by a guest blogger. You can read about the author in the post above. If you would like to submit an article, please write for us (sponsored guest posts). Paul Harrison, Editor, THE DAILY MEDITATION.